Review on the 3rd edition of Sibiu Quality Days, november 9 and 10 2012

Sibiu Quality Days 2012 – The only conference on quality management in Romania

“Quality management is like an insurance policy,” says Werner Seeger. “It reduces the risk of a company, especially in economically difficult times, as we currently see in Europe again.” How you can succeed in conducting your business despite turmoil reported Oswald Kolb, CEO of Continental Automotive Systems in Sibiu, at the plant tour on the occasion of the opening of the 3rd Sibiu Quality Days.

About 30 participants attended the conference on Quality Management. This year´s topic was “Quality Management. The key to success – Effective processes with interfaces regulated in part “. Top companies in the automotive sector as Continental Automotive Systems, Bosch Rexroth, Wittenstein, Hartmann and Mecanofin sent their managers responsible for quality management to the conference which was held on november the 9th and 10th in Sibiu.

The conference was organized by the management consultancy firm Werner Seeger Quality Management, based in Cisnadioara near Sibiu. “We want to raise awareness for quality issues with the quality managers at the companies. It is a crucial success factor in international competition for companies such as Continental, but also for Romanian companies”, said Managing Director Werner Seeger.

On quality, for example, sets Cristian Suteu, CEO of SC Autonova S.A. from Satu Mare. Suteu was one of the speakers at the conference. He is a manager who orientates in the success factors of international companies. Beside Suteu, Ernst Holzheimer, former CEO of Eybl Automotive in Timisoara, and Christian Curec, Plant Manager of Prevent, Radu Ghita, Quality Manager at Edward Hartmann Romania in Cisnadie and Dr. Raluca Oprisiu, lawyer with Stalfort, shared their experiences with quality issues.

Workshops

Lean, CI & Six Sigma – One of a kind.

Referent: Christian Curec,

Plant Manager S.C. Prevent Automotive Romania, Timişoara

In every manufacturing companies the management and quality managers lead a permanent struggle for the effective organization of production processes and related supporting processes. They can rely on a variety of new instruments:

CI – Continued Improvement;

Lean Manufacturing – the Toyota Production System spreaded in the 1990s throughout the Automotive industry;

Six Sigma – a system developed by Motorola in 1986 that constitutes a central pillar in the strategic management of a company;

Currently, many managers see themselves confronted with the following questions:

Which of these systems is the most efficient?

Which instruments can be used with which type of process?

Which of the above mentioned instruments is suitable for a particular process?

Is it possible to create synergies between the various instruments in order to achieve maximum progress?

The workshop tries to answer these questions regarding the quality management tools and the nature of their implementation.

Risks in process relocation

Referent: Radu Ghiţa,

Production Line Manager, Eduard Hartmann România, Cisnădie

The success of a company depends in some cases on the relocation of production to Eastern Europe. Detailed planning and the identification of processes that support the move to the new location are important factors in achieving the goals of any organization. The workshop aims to identify risks associated with interfaces between processes respectively means to prevent problems, that may constrain the organizational goals. The participants will have a detailed discussion of risks and the design of processes when moving a company´s production.

Quality management and management quality: Just a play on words?

Referent: Cristian Şuteu,

General Manager Autonova, Satu Mare

In quality management, there are numerous standards, procedures, instructions and established ways of working that regulate the practical application of QM. The general management of a company, however, is far from being to follow a similar framework. The quality of management depends primarily on the quality of the managers.

The workshop aims to identify in an interactive way, how generally recognized and accepted working practices from the field of quality management can be adopted for the general management. Workshop participants work out this topic on basis of a case study.

Design of support processes

Referent: Werner Seeger,

CEO, Seeger Qualitätsmanagement Romania, Sibiu

Support processes provide the necessary infrastructure for the process organization. They therefore serve the efficient fulfillment of business, core, value-added, and management processes. Again, there is a requirement that the planning, execution and control consistently follow the objectives of effectiveness and efficiency. The workshop will focus on the impacts and the possibilities for the design of support processes to improve the value-added processes within a company.

Integration of liability management in the Quality Management System – causes, consequences and prevention of liability cases

Referent: Dr. Raluca Oprişiu

Avocat, Stalfort, Sibiu

Liability management and quality management go hand in hand. In her lecture, Dr. Oprisiu explains relevant causes of liability and the legal bases. She will differentiate the terms of warranty and guarantee and will discuss the legal consequences as well. Dr. Oprisiu will also dispute the legal proceedings according the current and future Civil Code. The presentation will be completed with information on indirect liability consequences, such as the management liability, employee liability and risk management issues in the company and risks connected with outsourcing of company activities.

Speakers

Christian Curec is one of the most experienced Romanian managers in the Automotive industry working in this field for 14 years. In 2000 he occupied his first position as Quality Manager with Lipoplast SRL. Quickly he got responsable for the quality department of the company. During the last decade he dealt with a broad range of management systems, starting from the widespread-systems ISO 9001 or ISO/TS 16949 to more specific systems like CCC (China Quality Certification) and ARAI (India Quality Certification). Currently, Curec is plant manager with S.C. Prevent Automotive Romania, a subsidiary company of German enterprise producing covers for car seats.

Radu Ghita first came into contact with the automotive industry with Kuhnke Romania. He remained faithful to the industry and later actively supported the relocation of a part of production of Eduard Hartmann Romania to Romania, where he works to this day. Today he is a process engineer who is responsible for compliance of delivery conditions and terms, the proper operation of machinery and human resource management within his production line. He is ISO 9001 Certified Internal Auditor, as well as an internal auditor for ISO/TS 16949, VDA 6.3 and certified coach for process auditors according to VDA 6.3.

Cristian Suteu has been working since 1990 in the automotive industry. As a quality manager from 2001-2007, he was involved in the intro- duction of quality management systems in various automotive companies. He is currently active as a consultant for the Quality Management Systems ISO 9001:2007, ISO TS 16949, ISO 14001, OHSAS 18001. Suteu passed several trainings regarding ISO/TS 16949 in Romania, France and Germany. From April 2002 to December 2004, in addition to his quality management duties, he succesfully led a project team regarding the development of a braking system. Since 2008 Suteu is a partner of the WSQR network.

Werner Seeger is a mechanical engineer and has been working for about 25 years in the field of quality assurance/quality management. After holding management positions in this field in various industries, since 1994 he is working as a freelance consultant, coach, 3rd party auditor in the automotive industry and interim manager for quality management, enjoying international success. As managing director of Werner Seeger Quality Management he runs the organisation of „Sibiu Quality Days“.

Dr. Raluca-Isabela Oprisiu is head of the Stalfort-branch in Sibiu and has extensive experience in advising foreign investors in the company, contract and bankruptcy law. She published in recent years numerous articles and lectured in Germany and Romania concerning the practice-relevant aspects of these areas of law. Currently she has been dealing with the impact of the new Romanian Civil Code on contracts and liabilities.

As a joint venture between Daimler AG and the Ministry of Industries of Romania, we combine at our location in the west of Romania the Know-how of both partners regarding metal machining, with great advantages for the local economic development.

Bosch Rexroth

Bosch Rexroth AG is one of the world’s leading specialists in the field of drive and control technologies. Under the Rexroth brand name, the company supplies more than 500,000 customers with tailored solutions for driving, controlling, and moving. Bosch Rexroth is a partner for Mobile Applications, Machinery Applications and Engineering, Factory Automation and Renewable Energies. The company provides customized solutions tailored to the needs and specifications of each individual market. As The Drive & Control Company, Bosch Rexroth develops, produces, and sells components and systems in over 80 countries. As part of the Bosch Group, Bosch Rexroth and its 38,400 associates generated approximately 6.4 billion euros in revenue in 2011. To learn more, please visit www.boschrexroth.com

The Bosch Group is a leading global supplier of technology and services. According to preliminary figures, more than 300,000 associates generated sales of 51.4 billion euros in the areas of automotive and industrial technology, consumer goods, and building technology in fiscal 2011. The Bosch Group comprises Robert Bosch GmbH and its more than 350 subsidiaries and regional companies in some 60 countries. If its sales and service partners are included, then Bosch is represented in roughly 150 countries. This worldwide development, manufacturing, and sales network is the foundation for further growth. Bosch spent more than 4 billion euros for research and development in 2011, and applied for over 4,100 patents worldwide. With all its products and services, Bosch enhances the quality of life by providing solutions which are both innovative and beneficial. Additional information can be accessed at www.bosch.com, www.bosch-press.com

By opening a new plant in Blaj, May 2007, Bosch Rexroth has expanded the production capacity of linear motion technology. In the following years, the plant has expanded continuously; currently there are approximately 580 employees. In 2010 Bosch Rexroth has developed a nationwide sales network in Romania, thus the customers can be supported faster and more personalized. Bosch Rexroth SRL offers you Rexroth components as well as professional technical support.

KC & Partner

KC & Partner is a Consulting Company dedicated to Automotive Industry with Offices in Romania, Hungary, Czech Republic and Germany. The Company’s Consultants have Practical Experience with OEM’s, Specific Knowledge of OEM’s Expectations and Specific Knowledge regarding Automotive Parts and Manufacturing Processes.

Processes Optimization; Quality Methods with focus on Core Tools and Quality Tools Implementation in “day to day” Business; Prevention in Product Development with focus on Project Risk Identification for Product and Process Development Phases; Operational Processes Standardization with focus on Automotive Requirements Alignment.

KC & Partner and Korn Consult have been driving project in Europe – Germany, France, Poland, Czech Republic, Slovenia and Romania; America – USA and Mexico; Africa – South Africa; Asia – China and Korea; which proves our team flexibility and worldwide availability to support customers to improve their performances!

“Quality is not accidental, it’s the result of an effective business processes” is our motto. More information is available on the web page www.korn-consult.de

QSW Romania

Continental

With sales of 26 billion Euro in 2010, Continental is among the leading automotive suppliers worldwide. As a supplier of brake systems, systems and components for powertrains and chassis, instrumentation, infotainment solutions, vehicle electronics, tires and technical elastomers, Continental contributes to enhanced driving safety and global climate protection. Continental is also an expert partner in networked automobile communication. Continental currently has approximately 155,000 employees in 45 countries. Today, more than 4.500 employees, out of which 3.000 are engineers, are working in Romania for Continental Automotive. Sibiu location has aprox. 2.000 employees working in Research&Development Center and Plant and is still growing.

In the Research and Development Center Sibiu work 400 engineers on 5 main areas of work: Electronic Braking System, Advanced Driving Assistance Systems, Chassis Components, Body and Security, Transmission. Every team involved developes components and systems for different parts of the car such as electronic and hydraulic braking systems, pneumatic suspensions that are equipping the automotives’ luxury class, electronic control units for seats, mirrors, windows, doors and even futuristic technologies such as Lane Assist, Adaptive Cruize Control and City Safety packages. All this are already available, thanks to those peoples’ work.

The innovative Plant of Continental Sibiu in which the company invested to have the latest technologies on the market, counts 3 modules of production and almost 1400 employees. In here, ideeas and concepts take life helped by the technical specialists, machines and automated production lines. Devided in more areas of work, here are produced modules for interior confort and safety (electronic control units for seats, mirrors, windows, doors and board computer), modules for the traffic safety (electronic braking systems, airbag electronic control unit) and modules for engine transmission (double clutch transmission gearbox). Future looks bright for Continental in Sibiu and a 4th production module is announced. This means more performance regarding products and more jobs for future employees.